“What’s that?” Alex said.
He walked out of the kitchen and through the back door. Frowning, Lucy followed him. I hesitated for a moment and then did the same.
Outside, Alex was staring up into the sky. His brow was furrowed in concentration.
Panic hit me as I realized the sound he’d heard was an incoming helicopter.
“Get inside!” I said.
I urged them back into the lodge. Alex followed my instructions, but Lucy stood her ground. I put my hand on her shoulder, trying to get her to move.
She batted it away. “They can pick us up!”
“No!” I said.
“Why not?”
The sound of the helicopter grew louder. “Come on, it’s not safe.”
Lucy half turned to go inside, but she was still reluctant. “What do you mean, not safe?”
I beckoned to her, desperately searching for an excuse. “There’s no time to explain. Come on!”
Finally, she gave in and followed Alex into the lodge. Once they were both inside, I checked the sky. There was no sign of the chopper, but the sound of its engine was getting louder by the second. I ducked inside, swung the door shut, and bolted it.
I went to the window, searching for the helicopter and running over everything that had happened since the others had arrived.
Was there anything outside that would show the camp was inhabited? I was always careful not to leave any signs of life out in the open. My perimeter alarm was a calculated risk. The wires and cans were too small to be spotted from the air. But I couldn’t be sure Alex and Lucy hadn’t changed something.
What about heat signatures? If the army was using some sort of infrared camera to look for survivors, they might see the heat from the lodge. Visions of the military touching down in the clearing behind the building flashed through my head. I slammed my hand against the wall in frustration.
Lucy appeared at my side. “What the hell is going on?”
I raised my hand to cut her off as the helicopter roared over the building. There was no gunner this time, and its side door was closed. I hoped that was a good thing.
“Marcus,” Lucy said. “Tell us why we aren’t outside, trying to flag down that helicopter.”
I waited until the aircraft was out of sight then turned to her. “It’s not safe.”
Her lips pursed slightly before she spoke. “You said that. Why isn’t it safe?”
I grasped at the excuses flickering through my head, clinging to the first one that sounded plausible. “They aren’t the military.”
Lucy frowned. “Then who are they?”
“They’re some sort of gang. A cult maybe.” She looked skeptical, but I carried on, the lies slipping neatly into place. “I ran into them in the forest a couple of weeks ago and only just got away. If they find us here, they’ll kill us, if we’re lucky.”
“And this cult has a helicopter?”
“Yes, they must have found it somewhere. There’s junk like that all over the place.”
Lucy moved past me and looked out the window. “If it was them, they’ve gone now.”
“It’s for the best, believe me. I saw what they do to people.”
Alex winced. “Sounds like we had a lucky escape.”
When Lucy didn’t respond, he put a hand on her shoulder. “Come on, Luce, let’s get something to eat.”
She nodded, still staring after the helicopter. Eventually, the two of them went back into the kitchen, leaving me in the dining room with my stomach twisted into knots.
Chapter 20
Perimeter
I ate my breakfast of lukewarm vegetable soup in the kitchen while Lucy tended to Mike. Alex sat in the dining room. He seemed to have been taken in by my story—a post-apocalyptic cult probably fit very well with his pop culture–inspired expectations.
Lucy hadn’t bought it. She didn’t challenge me, but she barely said a word as Alex dished out the food. I’d considered following her into the lounge to try to make conversation, but I didn’t want to have to embellish my story further. Lies are best kept short and to the point.
Once I’d finished the soup, I went out onto the bench behind the lodge. There were a few clouds in the sky, but otherwise, it was another idyllic day. It was as though nature were trying to compensate for the horrors mankind had unleashed by stringing together endless weeks of good weather.
The lodge door opened, and Alex came out. He stood near the bench, gazing out across the clearing as though he was searching for something. I let him stand there, happy with the silence, but after a couple of minutes he turned his attention to me. “Is there really a gang out there? With a helicopter?”
I shifted on the bench. “Yes, there is.”
“And their camp’s close by?”
“I think so.”
“Is that how come they nearly caught you? They found this place?”
“No, that was before I came here.”
Alex ran his hand through his hair, pulling it into a ponytail before letting go again. “So… what happened?”
I took a deep breath then let it out again. I put on a pained expression as though I were dredging up memories I’d prefer stayed buried. “I’d rather not talk about it.”
“I shouldn’t have asked. Sorry.”
I waved his apology away.
Alex looked out toward the forest. His eyes grew distant, and he rubbed at his arm, as though he was cold. “There’s some dark spirits out there, man. Really dark.”
He might not have been the smartest person I’d ever met, but he was right about that, and they were closer than he thought. “That sounds like you’re speaking from experience?”
Alex nodded slowly, but before he could elaborate the back door opened, and Lucy stepped out into the sunshine. She exchanged a look I couldn’t read with Alex, and he stayed quiet.
“There’s bloodstains upstairs in one of the bedrooms,” she said. “Do you know how they got there?”
I thought I could detect a hint of accusation in her voice. She’d been snooping around. Maybe she’d even gone into my room. Did she think I’d killed someone?
“It was the counselors from the camp.”
“The ones from the photo on the stairs?”
“Yes, they killed themselves.”
Alex sucked in a breath and muttered something I couldn’t hear.
“Where are the bodies?” Lucy said.
I gestured over my shoulder. “I buried them in the forest, away from the camp.”
“What about the others?”
I frowned as though I didn’t know what she meant.
“From the cabins. There’s cases and clothes in a couple of them.”
I caught myself about to look in the direction of the workshop and stopped, hoping she hadn’t noticed. “I don’t know. There’s no sign of them. Other than the clothes, I mean.”
“Maybe they went for help?” Alex said.
I shrugged but didn’t speak.
“Maybe,” Lucy said.
I avoided her gaze while still trying not to look guilty. The inquisition was making me tense, but the shadow was reveling in the attention.
There was a pause, just long enough to become awkward, then Alex said, “I’m going to take a look around.”
“Be careful,” Lucy said.
“Don’t worry, I’ll stay close.”
I tried to think of some way of discouraging him, but my mind went blank. He wandered out onto the grass, toward the forest and the path to the workshop.
Lucy came over to the bench and sat down. I shifted sideways to give her some more room then instantly wondered whether that made me seem more or less guilty.
“How is he?” I said. “Your friend, I mean.”
“Mike? He’s okay. Still unconscious, but I think the antibiotics are helping. Thanks for letting us have them.”
I thought of how small the bottle of pills was and how likely it was that I’d need antibiotics myself at some point. “It’s
not a big deal.”
“Well, thank you anyway.” Lucy’s voice was soft, all trace of suspicion gone for now. Did that mean I was in the clear, or was she just setting a trap for me to stumble into?
Something cracked in the forest to our right, and we both turned to look. Alex was at the opposite end of the clearing and didn’t notice. The noise came again, and then a pair of crows took off into the sky, squawking as they chased each other. Lucy’s shoulders relaxed, but she kept her eyes fixed on the trees.
“It changes people,” she said, quietly. “Having to fight for survival, constantly worrying about dying.”
“No, it doesn’t change people. It reveals who they really are.”
Lucy looked at me. There was sadness in her eyes, deep and painful. “Do you really think that?”
I pretended to consider the question for a moment. “Yes. I do.”
Lucy shook her head. “I can’t believe that’s true. I won’t.”
She looked at me, her eyes boring into mine. I think she was daring me to disagree with her. When I didn’t respond, she turned back to the forest. Her gaze wandered around the edge of the clearing. She was looking for something, or someone.
When she spoke again, the sadness had gone from her voice, replaced by her normal confident self. “Do you have a map of this area?”
Fear trickled down my spine. The map was in my backpack in the kitchen. It was only a matter of time before someone found it, and then they’d know the helicopter was probably from the ranger station, not some psychopathic gang.
“No,” I said, “but I wish I did.”
“Where did the supplies come from?”
“There’s a store a few miles southwest. It hasn’t been raided, so there’s lots of food there.”
“Is it safe?”
“No. I walked right into the middle of a swarm on the way there.”
“A swarm?”
“That’s what I call a big group of zombies.”
Lucy nodded. “We’ve met a couple, twenty or thirty zombies in each.”
I gave a little laugh. “There were well over a hundred in the group I met. I had to hide in a tree.”
Lucy’s eyebrows flicked upward, her eyes wide. Her lips curved into a slight smile. “A tree? That must have been interesting.”
“If by interesting you mean a terrifying experience I’d rather not repeat, then yes.”
“How did you find the store? If you don’t have a map.”
“I passed it on the way here. I’m pretty good at remembering where things are.”
“Boy Scout?”
I laughed again and shook my head.
Alex had made it to the far side of the clearing, and he was getting closer to the path that led to the workshop. He hadn’t seen it yet. I’d been careful not to disturb the bushes disguising the gap in the trees, but I still grew tenser with every step he took toward it.
“Are you okay?” Lucy said.
I frowned. “Yes. I was just thinking… about my trip to the store.”
“Was that when you met the gang?” The hint of skepticism was back in her voice.
“No, that was after the store.”
“I thought you said it was a couple of weeks ago?”
“Yes, it was. I meant after I found the store the first time. The second time I didn’t see the gang. Just the swarm.”
Alex was getting closer to the path, and that, combined with Lucy’s questions, was making me uncomfortable.
“Ah okay,” she said.
There was a cough from inside the lodge.
Lucy stood to go back inside. I kept watching Alex.
“Do you have any more blankets?” Lucy said. “I need to keep Mike warm.”
Alex was a couple of feet away from the entrance to the pathway. “I think there’s some upstairs. In the second room. I’m in the first one.”
Lucy said something, but I was already moving across the grass toward Alex. He was peering through the trees, trying to pull the bushes aside to get onto the trail.
I called out to him. “Alex?”
He half turned toward me. “Yeah?”
“I need your help.”
“Sure, anything.”
I moved around Alex so that I was between him and the pathway. “We’ve got to check the perimeter. Make sure nothing brought it down in the night.”
Alex nodded enthusiastically. “Okay, no problem. Just tell me what to do.”
I put my hand on his shoulder and guided him away from the trail. “We’ll start over there, on the east side.”
Alex nodded, and we set off across the grass. Behind him, I could see Lucy standing outside the lodge, watching us. Watching me.
Alex and I walked around the camp, checking the perimeter wires were still intact. He talked constantly, vomiting out words without really saying anything. For my part, I stuck to grunts of acknowledgment and the occasional vague comment. That seemed to be enough for him. He was quite happy to prattle on with minimal interruption. One part of me wanted to ask questions, but another was tired of interacting with people and was content to let him talk.
We were about halfway around the camp, close to the path that led down to the river, when a quiet scuffling noise came from the nearby undergrowth. Alex froze, his jabbering cut short. A squirrel burst from beneath a nearby bush and darted in front of us. Its tail brushed one of the tin cans hanging from the perimeter, setting it clattering.
Alex clutched at his heart. “Whoa.” He was laughing, but his voice was uneven, and his skin was pale. He let out a slow breath and rubbed his forehead. I watched him closely as he looked off into the forest, eyes flicking left and right, searching for something.
“It was only a squirrel,” I said.
He half smiled. “Yeah.”
I focused on checking the can the squirrel had disturbed while Alex recovered. As we moved on around the camp, he kept his eyes on the forest. He didn’t talk, just rubbed at the graze on his knuckles and left me to make sure the perimeter was set up correctly.
“So, what happened?” I said, pointing to the graze.
“Huh?” He looked down at his hand as though he’d forgotten it was there. “Oh… I scraped it on a rock when I was out getting wood for a fire. No biggie.”
“There’s some antiseptic cream in the lodge; you should put some of that on it. No point risking an infection.”
“Sure, good idea. Thanks.” He nodded, but his attention was still somewhere else.
As we got closer to the lodge, I stopped to tighten a length of string that I’d wrapped around a young tree. Alex stood next to me, still watching the forest. He frowned and tilted his head.
“You see something?” I said.
“Yes… no… probably not. I think it’s just a shadow.”
I followed his gaze, but the forest looked empty. By the time I’d finished with the string, the frown had gone, but Alex was still watching.
I stepped in front of him. “What’s wrong? You’re looking for something.”
He hesitated, just for a second. “No, it’s nothing. Nothing’s wrong.”
I wouldn’t have thought it was possible, but the guy was a worse liar than I was. Apparently, we all had secrets. I let it pass and moved on along the perimeter. He followed a few seconds behind me.
When we got back to the lounge, Mike was sitting up on the couch. Lucy had dragged over one of the armchairs to be next to him. She’d found a couple of blankets upstairs and had wrapped them around his shoulders. Dark rings curved beneath his eyes. His forehead was slick with sweat. I’d met zombies that looked more alive. As Alex and I walked into the room, Mike coughed. His chest made a harsh rattling sound.
Alex broke into a grin as soon as he saw Mike was awake. “Hey, you’re finally back in the land of the living.”
Mike nodded, but he was looking past Alex at me.
Lucy leaned in toward him. “This is the person I was telling you about. Marcus.”
Mike smiled. “Hey, M
arcus. Forgive me if I don’t get up. I’m still feeling pretty unsteady.” He raised a hand to the cut on his head. “Thanks for letting us stay here; we really appreciate it. And for the antibiotics. I hear you probably saved my life.”
“That’s okay,” I said, trying to sound like I meant it. “It’s just until you’re back on your feet.”
“Definitely, we don’t want to encroach on—” Another rattling, wheezing cough interrupted him. Lucy touched his back, her face creased in concern.
It took him a full thirty seconds to get his breathing under control. He wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. “Sorry about that.”
I shook my head in response.
“What I was trying to say was that we don’t want to encroach on your territory. We’ll be out of your hair as soon as possible.”
“Thank you,” I said.
We stood, frozen in our respective positions, until Lucy spoke. “Everything okay out there, Alex?”
“Errr. Sure, yeah. Yeah, it’s all good.”
The room fell silent again.
Alex shifted his feet then said, “I thought I could check out the river, see if I can catch us some fish. Unless anyone needs me here?”
“That sounds like a good idea,” Mike said. “Fresh sushi would make a change from that jerky.”
Lucy laughed. “Yes, that would be good. Thanks.”
“Any fishing gear around here?” asked Alex.
I shook my head. “Not as far as I know. I haven’t seen any.”
Alex stuck out his bottom lip and bobbed his head. “In that case, I guess I’ll just have to grab them out of the water with my bare hands. Like a bear.” He grimaced and made a swiping motion with clawed hands.
Lucy rolled her eyes. “Go on, get out of here. Get back before it even thinks about getting dark, okay?”
It was Alex’s turn to roll his eyes. “Yes, Mom,” he said, grinning.
“And…” Mike said.
All three of them spoke in unison. “Watch your backside.”
They laughed, the phrase apparently a tradition born out of repetition and shared experience. There was an easiness to their manner. It was as though now that Mike was on the road to recovery they could relax.
Serial Killer Z [Book 1] Page 10
